Happy snowy Friday everyone!! In light of the crazy
weather conditions we have had this week; I have taken this opportunity to
explore technological options for snow days.
Recently, a school in Illinois has decided to forgo
their snow days in lieu of e-learning days.
When the snow begins to fly and it is unsafe for students to travel to
school, they are expected to log onto a pre-determined online social learning
network where they will find the day’s assignment and readings. They are able to virtually chat with their
classmates, view videos based on course content and complete lessons created by
the instructor. For the full article on
the Waterloo IL school you can find it here (http://bit.ly/1jQq7EU)
Three online tools which can be utilized to facilitate
this type of learning in your classroom are: Edmodo, My Big Campus and
Questgarden.
Edmoto (https://www.edmodo.com)
This platform is much like Facebook for educators
and students. It is accessible from a
desktop computer as well as through an app for smartphones. Students do not need to create an account or
have an email address to log-in. The
teacher simply gives them a group code which allows them access and connects them
to their classmates. Instructors can post
assignments, create polls for students to respond to, attach video clips, post
a quiz for students and create a calendar of events and assignments. Students
can upload assignments as well as message one another or the teacher. There is
also an option to invite parents into the group so that they can be aware of
their child’s progress and upcoming assignments.
My Big Campus (http://www.mybigcampus.com/)
Very similar to Edmodo, My Big
Campus has a clear and organized home-base and allows parents to be included in
the entire online learning process. It has
a pre-embedded library of materials including documents, websites and videos
which you can use with your students or add your own. Based out of the United
States, MBC is a little more difficult to create an account because it doesn’t
have our schools pre-loaded and they need to be added which can take more time.
Webquests with Questgarden (http://questgarden.com/)
A
webquest is an online inquiry-based learning project which emphasizes the use
of higher order thinking skills. The
teacher preselects web resources so that students are using reliable and safe
research materials. Webquests can be
created using various programs including a website on UGCloud; however I have
found that creating the first quest (or two) can be easier with an online template
or step-by-step program such as Questgarden.
They have hundreds of searchable quests
already prepared and available for you to use free on the Questgarden website. You are also able to create one of your own
with a trial version or subscription. A
30-day trial version is available free or teachers, and although their costs
for a subscription are minimal ($20US for two years); I find that I can prepare
a quest and students can complete it within the allocated trial period.
Webquests
have six basic parts: Introduction, Task,
Process, Resources, Evaluation, and Conclusion.
Tasks are
often authentic in design and offer real-world challenges for students to
solve. The process includes the steps
you wish students to take to accomplish their task. On the resources page live
links and information which you would like your students to use to complete their
assignment are posted. This places all
of the required information is in one location so that they do not need to
research the internet for reliable sources (or possibly get side tracked)
allowing them to focus on processing the information. Evaluation allows you to
explain to your students how they will be marked on their project, frequently
in the form of a rubric. Finally the
conclusion page is a place to discuss what they have learned, and possibly
extend it into areas of further learning. Here is a link to an example which has
students examine the impact that the mega quarry would have had on the
surrounding businesses, farms and general public. Mega Quarry Webquest
I hope
that we will be able to get back to a regular routine in the schools and that
these types of online learning opportunities will not be necessary, but until
then, fingers crossed that the Groundhog will not be seeing any shadows this
week so we can begin making plans for an early spring.
Stay safe
and warm everyone,
Stace
